Josh Calloway (born February 3, 1979) is an American politician from

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

. A member of the Republican Party, he has been a member of the

Kentucky House of Representatives The Kentucky House of Representatives is the lower house of the Kentucky General Assembly. It is composed of 100 Representatives elected from single-member districts throughout the Commonwealth. Not more than two counties can be joined to form a ...

since January 2021. He represents Kentucky's 10th House district, which includes Breckenridge and Hardin counties.

Early life and education

Calloway was born February 3, 1979. He grew up in Fordsville, Kentucky, but currently resides in Irvington. He earned a certification in health and safety from

Eastern Kentucky University Eastern Kentucky University (Eastern or EKU) is a public university in Richmond, Kentucky. It also maintains branch campuses in Corbin, Hazard, and Manchester and offers over 40 online undergraduate and graduate options. History Founding ...

Career

Prior to entering politics, he worked for the National Office Furniture and the Protech EIS Corporation. He has also been a preacher, volunteer jail chaplain, music director, and piano player at Pleasant View Baptist Church. As of 2019, he was also director of Hope Through Truth Ministries and the Hope Academy, a transitional living home for at-risk men.

Political career

Calloway was elected from Kentucky's 10th House district, which includes Breckenridge and Hardin counties.

Elections

* 2018 Calloway was unopposed in the 2018 Republican primary but was defeated in the 2018 Kentucky House of Representatives election by incumbent

Dean Schamore Dean Schamore is an American politician and businessman who served as a member of the Kentucky House of Representatives from the 10th district from 2015 to 2021. Early life Schamore was born and raised in Hardinsburg, Kentucky. He served in the ...

. * 2020 Calloway was unopposed in the 2020 Republican primary and won the

2020 Kentucky House of Representatives election Elections to the Kentucky House of Representatives were held on November 3, 2020. Predictions Closest races Seats where the margin of victory was under 10%: # # gain # # gain # # # gain # # gain # # gain # # Results ...

against incumbent Dean Schamore, winning with 11,624 votes. * 2022 Calloway was unopposed in the 2022 Republican primary and won the

2022 Kentucky House of Representatives election The 2022 Kentucky House of Representatives election was held on November 8, 2022. The Republican and Democratic primary elections were held on May 17. All 100 seats of the house were up for election. Republicans increased their majority in the ...

against

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States * Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...

candidate John Whipple, winning with 11,516 votes. * 2024 Calloway won the 2024 Republican primary against challenger Julie Cantwell, winning with 2,773 votes, and won the

2024 Kentucky House of Representatives election The 2024 Kentucky House of Representatives election was held on November 5, 2024. The Republican and Democratic primary elections were held on May 21. Following the 2022 Kentucky House of Representatives election, 2022 election, Republicans an ...

with 15,702 votes (69%) against Democratic candidate John Whipple.

Tenure

In 2022, Calloway opposed legislation to legalize

sports betting Sports betting is the activity of predicting sports results and placing a wager on the outcome. Sports bettors place their wagers either legally, through a sportsbook or bookmaker (colloquially known as "bookies"), or illegally through priva ...

in Kentucky.Bruce Schreiner
House passes bill to legalize sports betting in Kentucky
Associated Press (March 18, 2022). Although Republicans held a

supermajority A supermajority is a requirement for a proposal to gain a specified level of support which is greater than the threshold of one-half used for a simple majority. Supermajority rules in a democracy can help to prevent a majority from eroding fun ...

in both chambers of the

Kentucky General Assembly The Kentucky General Assembly, also called the Kentucky Legislature, is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Kentucky. It comprises the Kentucky Senate and the Kentucky House of Representatives. The General Assembly meets annually in th ...

, the party was split on the issue of gambling. In 2024, he criticized Governor Andy Beshear for issuing an executive order to ban conversion therapy for LGBT youth. Calloway said the order defied the will of the legislature. Republican lawmakers had repeatedly blocked efforts to ban conversion therapy. In 2024, Calloway introduced legislation (House Bill 208) to propose an amendment to the

Kentucky Constitution The Constitution of the Commonwealth of Kentucky is the document that governs the Commonwealth of Kentucky. It was first adopted in 1792 and has since been rewritten three times and amended many more. The later versions were adopted in 1799, 1850 ...

to allow public funds to be allocated to

charter schools A charter school is a school that receives government funding but operates independently of the established state school system in which it is located. It is independent in the sense that it operates according to the basic principle of autono ...

.Krista Johnson
'School choice': Bill would amend Kentucky Constitution to fund charter schools
''Louisville Courier Journal'' (January 9, 2024).Bruce Schreiner
School-choice advocates mount broader effort in Kentucky
Associated Press (February 8, 2023). The state constitution currently allows education appropriations to go to "

common school A common school was a public school in the United States during the 19th century. Horace Mann (1796–1859) was a strong advocate for public education and the common school. In 1837, the state of Massachusetts appointed Mann as the first secretar ...

s" only, which the

Kentucky Supreme Court The Kentucky Supreme Court is the state supreme court of the U.S. state of Kentucky. Prior to its creation by constitutional amendment in 1975, the Kentucky Court of Appeals was the only appellate court in Kentucky. The Kentucky Court of Ap ...

has interpreted to mean public schools.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Calloway, Josh 1979 births Living people Eastern Kentucky University alumni Republican Party members of the Kentucky House of Representatives 21st-century members of the Kentucky General Assembly